http://www.largesound.com/ashboryarticle/concept/ukulele/
This is awesome. Apparently it enters standup bass range.
This is awesome. Apparently it enters standup bass range.
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I MUST HAVE ONE!
- Thread starter YL_Bass
- Start date
yea, very cool. i played one of these (wasn't an ashbory, but it was a fretless bass uke with silicone strings) at a music store in CA. i think they wanted $800 for it, i only played it for a second on the way out of the shop, but i thought it was pretty cool.
I tried one they felt cheap it had a plastic neck the strings were rubber I understand they are not full grown basses but, come on I just can't see the appeal they have.
They feel like crap.
They feel like crap.
Jim Carr
Dr. Jim
- Jan 21, 2006
- 16,223
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- fEARful Kool-Aid dispensing liberal academic card-carrying union member Musicians Local 72-147
Thanks for this. I will be in HI this summer and will check these out. BTW, according to the video/info you can find at the kala link, they are mahogany and rosewood--not plastic as erroneously reported above.
Different strokes for different folks. 
Guitar is my first instrument and I've jammed with all kinds of folks including some Uke players. Which is very similar (IMO) to the Mandolin (sp?) They're both tiny, tinny little instruments with microscopic necks that produce two sounds. Tinny and tinny metallic. MHO, of course. But they're both musical instruments just the same and any live instrument is always better than some computer-generated tones. There's an instrument for everyone out there.
Guitar is my first instrument and I've jammed with all kinds of folks including some Uke players. Which is very similar (IMO) to the Mandolin (sp?) They're both tiny, tinny little instruments with microscopic necks that produce two sounds. Tinny and tinny metallic. MHO, of course. But they're both musical instruments just the same and any live instrument is always better than some computer-generated tones. There's an instrument for everyone out there. I just thought it be great for taking to impromptu acoustic gigs instead of dragging in my standup. I hate the sound of 'acoustic' basses.
yes, the one i played was most def. made of mahogany and not plastic. the strings were silicone (black) i think, which is the same as the what they use for the ashbory basses? it was a very high quality instrument and if i'd had the money handy i may have been persuaded into it (not that i would have much use for it).
Then you need to try out a few more acoustic basses. There is no acoustic bass 'sound', each and every one has its own voice. Just like every other type of instrument.
ok, lets not confuse an instruments individual tone with it's general sound of the instrument. all electric basses sound like electric basses, all acoustic basses sound like acoustic basses, all violins sound like violins, all clarinets sound like clarinets and all rectangles are quadrilaterals.
maybe he doesn't like the hollow woody sound that acoustic basses have (craaazy), not much to be done there.
and I must still disagree. The Martin acoustic I play sounds nothing like the other acoustic basses I've played. If each bass has its own voice, the correct statment would be "I've never heard an acoustic bass that I liked" to which "you need to try out a few more acoustic basses." is a valid response. If he doesnt like the 'woody hollow' sound, there are acoustics that dont sound 'woody or hollow'. Trying other guitars would be your option. Or a goofy UkeBass.
Yes, All violins sound like violins. Thats why Strads' sell for so cheap!
edit for spelling
Yes, All violins sound like violins. Thats why Strads' sell for so cheap!
edit for spelling
but does your martin still sound like an acoustic bass? and if not then what does it sound like?
i would say that my italia sounds like no other electric bass i've played but i'm not going to sit here and tell you that it doesn't sound like an electric bass.
like wise, a stradivarius still sounds like a violin no matter how much the experts rave about how much better it is. (not to mention all the double blind tests done over the years that showed that the experts could no better tell the difference between a strad and a pineapple
)
Andy Brown
Commercial User
- Jul 23, 2004
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Beware of the silicone strings. They may sound decent in experienced hands, but they are very sticky unless you use powder, more annoying than fun. To the poster looking for a DB alternative, check out the Rob Allen Mouse.
I cannot see this thing having a snowball's chance in hell of being heard w/in 50 feet of another instrument.
oh definitely. quieter than an ABG, i'd say it was about as loud as playing a hofner acoustically.
The Kala ukulele bass is real wood and the strings are some sort of polyurethane (but not gummy silicone...so no powder). Take a look at the Utube postings for the U-bass. The damn thing sounds quite good (and uprighty)...and gets rave reviews. A novelty (the website lists the players who use it on gigs) but not a toy and much more playable and of far higher quality than the Ashbory (which I once owned but ditched).
They aren't suppose to be an acoustic only instrument. That's why they have PUP's in them - DUH. They have plenty of acoustic volume to practice on your own though.
I have one, and they really shine when amplified. And to address the strings - powder is probably the last thing I would use. What I do is rub my finger tips on the side of face to pick some natural oil from my skin, and then start playing. Might sound crazy - but it works perfectly.
I have one, and they really shine when amplified. And to address the strings - powder is probably the last thing I would use. What I do is rub my finger tips on the side of face to pick some natural oil from my skin, and then start playing. Might sound crazy - but it works perfectly.
